Together with their “lanky boi” legacy and Christ-as-servant leadership, there are three seniors who star on the cross-country course.
Joseph Kunert has completed multiple races and has been chosen as a captain for his team. Joseph’s personal best time achieved this year at the DSU Herb Blakely Invitational with a time of 27:23.0. He finished third out of 40 runners.
Kunert completed his junior year at the GPAC championship where he placed 31st out of 90 runners with a time of 28:34. However, for Kunert, the PR’s will come and go, but Jesus is constant. He hopes the “lanky boi” legacy is more about Jesus than running and that people remember the awesome short shorts they wear.
“We do our best to excel through running, but I think a lot of us value our relationships with the team to an even higher standard,” said Kunert. He will never forget the time he slept on Coly bunk beds in Coach Marlon’s front lawn before 5:30 a.m. practice.
According to Coach Bahrke, “Joseph’s love of Jesus and wanting others to have a personal relationship with Christ” has defined Kunert’s impact on the team.
Daniel Nordquist transferred to Northwestern after running two years at Iowa Central Community College.
“The NW (cross-country team) feels like a family. I have met some of my best friends here running for NW and these friendships will last for a lifetime. We are here for each teammate for whatever reason at any time of day,” he said.
Nordquist has grown to be part of the “lanky boi” legacy. Nordquist will never forget when he transferred to NW his teammates and coaches showed him love, grace and helped him regain a personal relationship with Christ.
“[Daniel] knows what it means to be a Raider and wants to pass that legacy on to the younger men on the team and his greatest impact has been his passion for running and competing,” said Coach Bahrke.
Alex Nonhof has been running with Northwestern since he was a freshman in 2019. He competed in multiple races including the GPAC Championship where he finished 37th out of 90 runners with a time of 28:53.
His personal best was at the Briar Cliff Invite his sophomore year with a time of 27:33.9. Coach Bahrke described Nonhof’s greatest influence on the team being his work ethic. Because of this, he has achieved great success in college. He pushed himself to be a top runner on the men’s cross-country team with extra miles.
The end is in sight for Kunert, Nordquist and Nonhof. In fact, through Christ and tradition, the race is already won.
